[Introduced March 25, 2013; referred to the
Committee on Energy, Industry and Labor, Economic
Development and Small Business then Finance.]

A BILL to amend and reenact §24-2F-3, §24-2F-4, §24-2F-5, §24-2F-6
and §24-2F-10 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
all relating to alternative and renewable energy portfolio
standards; defining terms; establishing standards for the sale
of electricity generated from solar renewable energy
resources; providing for compliance assessments; creating a
system of tradable solar renewable energy resource credits;
providing for the awarding of solar renewable energy resource
credits based upon electricity generated or purchased from
solar renewable energy resource facilities; and establishing
a distributed solar renewable energy requirement.Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §24-2F-3, §24-2F-4, §24-2F-5, §24-2F-6 and §24-2F-10 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and
reenacted, all to read as follows:ARTICLE 2F. ALTERNATIVE AND RENEWABLE ENERGY PORTFOLIO STANDARD.§24-2F-3. Definitions.
Unless the context clearly requires a different meaning, as
used in this article:
(1) "Advanced coal technology" means a technology that is used
in a new or existing energy generating facility to reduce airborne
carbon emissions associated with the combustion or use of coal and
includes, but is not limited to, carbon dioxide capture and
sequestration technology, supercritical technology, advanced
supercritical technology as that technology is determined by the
Public Service Commission, ultrasupercritical technology and
pressurized fluidized bed technology and any other resource,
method, project or technology certified by the commission as
advanced coal technology.
(2) "Alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard" or
"portfolio standard" means a requirement in any given year that
requires an electric utility to own credits and solar renewable
energy credits in an amount equal to a certain percentage of
electric energy sold in the preceding calendar year by the electric
utility to retail customers in this state.
(3) "Alternative energy resources" means any of the following
resources, methods or technologies for the production or generation
of electricity:
(A) Advanced coal technology;
(B) Coal bed methane;
(C) Natural gas, including any component of raw natural gas;
(D) Fuel produced by a coal gasification or liquefaction
facility;
(E) Synthetic gas;
(F) Integrated gasification combined cycle technologies;
(G) Waste coal;
(H) Tire derived fuel;
(I) Pumped storage hydroelectric projects; and
(J) Any other resource, method, project or technology
certified as an alternative energy resource by the Public Service
Commission.
(4) "Alternative and renewable energy resource credit" or
"credit" means a tradable instrument that is used to establish,
verify and monitor the generation of electricity from alternative
and non-solar renewable energy resource facilities, energy
efficiency or demand-side energy initiative projects or greenhouse
gas emission reduction or offset projects.
(5) "Alternative energy resource facility" means a facility or
equipment that generates electricity from alternative energy
resources.
(6) "Commission" or "Public Service Commission" means the
Public Service Commission of West Virginia as continued pursuant to
section three, article one of this chapter.
(7) "Customer-generator" means an electric retail customer who owns and operates a customer-sited generation project utilizing an
alternative or renewable energy resource or a net metering system
in this state.
_____(8) "Distributed solar renewable energy resource" means a
customer-sited and customer owned facility, not to exceed a
production of fifty kilowatts, that generates electricity only from
solar photovoltaic resources, solar thermal resources, or other
solar electric energy resources.
_____(8)(9)"Electric utility" means any electric distribution
company or electric generation supplier that sells electricity to
retail customers in this state. Unless specifically provided for
otherwise, for the purposes of this article, the term "electric
utility" may not include rural electric cooperatives, municipally-
owned electric facilities or utilities serving less than thirty
thousand residential electric customers in West Virginia.(9)(10) "Energy efficiency or demand-side energy initiative
project" means a project in this state that promotes customer
energy efficiency or the management of customer consumption of
electricity through the implementation of:
(A) Energy efficiency technologies, equipment, management
practices or other strategies utilized by residential, commercial,
industrial, institutional or government customers that reduce
electricity consumption by those customers;
(B) Load management or demand response technologies, equipment, management practices, interruptible or curtailable
tariffs, energy storage devices or other strategies in residential,
commercial, industrial, institutional and government customers that
shift electric load from periods of higher demand to periods of
lower demand;
(C) Industrial by-product technologies consisting of the use
of a by-product from an industrial process, including, but not
limited to, the reuse of energy from exhaust gases or other
manufacturing by-products that can be used in the direct production
of electricity at the customer's facility;
(D) Customer-sited generation, demand-response, energy
efficiency or peak demand reduction capabilities, whether new or
existing, that the customer commits for integration into the
electric utility's demand-response, energy efficiency or peak
demand reduction programs; or
(E) Infrastructure and modernization projects that help
promote energy efficiency, reduce energy losses or shift load from
periods of higher demand to periods of lower demand, including the
modernization of metering and communications, (also known as "smart
grid"), distribution automation, energy storage, distributed energy
resources and investments to promote the electrification of
transportation.(10)(11) "Greenhouse gas emission reduction or offset
project" means a project to reduce or offset greenhouse gas emissions from sources in this state other than the electric
utility's own generating and energy delivery operations.
Greenhouse gas emission reduction or offset projects include, but
are not limited to:
(A) Methane capture and destruction from landfills, coal mines
or farms;
(B) Forestation, afforestation or reforestation; and
(C) Nitrous oxide or carbon dioxide sequestration through
reduced fertilizer use or no-till farming.(11)(12) "Net metering" means measuring the difference
between electricity supplied by an electric utility and electricity
generated from an alternative or renewable energy resource facility
owned or operated by an electric retail customer when any portion
of the electricity generated from the alternative or renewable
energy resource facility is used to offset part or all of the
electric retail customer's requirements for electricity._____(13) "Nonsolar renewable energy resource" means any of the
following resources, methods, projects or technologies for the
production or generation of electricity:
_____(A) Wind power;
_____(B) Run of river hydropower;
_____(C) Geothermal energy, which means a technology by which
electricity is produced by extracting hot water or steam from
geothermal reserves in the earth's crust to power steam turbines that drive generators to produce electricity;
_____(D) Biomass energy, which means a technology by which
electricity is produced from a nonhazardous organic material that
is available on a renewable or recurring basis, including pulp mill
sludge;
_____(E) Biologically derived fuel including methane gas, ethanol
not produced from corn, or biodiesel fuel;
_____(F) Fuel cell technology, which means any electrochemical
device that converts chemical energy in a hydrogen-rich fuel
directly into electricity, heat and water without combustion; and
_____(G) Any other resource, method, project or technology, other
than solar photovoltaic resources, solar thermal resources, or
other solar electric energy resources, that are certified by the
commission as a renewable energy resource._____(14) "Nonsolar renewable energy resource facility" means a
facility or equipment that generates electricity from non-solar
renewable energy resources.
_____(12)(15) "Reclaimed surface mine" means a surface mine, as
that term is defined in section three, article three, chapter
twenty-two of this code, that is reclaimed or is being reclaimed in
accordance with state or federal law.(13) "Renewable energy resource" means any of the following
resources, methods, projects or technologies for the production or
generation of electricity:
(A) Solar photovoltaic or other solar electric energy;
(B) Solar thermal energy;
(C) Wind power;
(D) Run of river hydropower;
(E) Geothermal energy, which means a technology by which
electricity is produced by extracting hot water or steam from
geothermal reserves in the earth's crust to power steam turbines
that drive generators to produce electricity;
(F) Biomass energy, which means a technology by which
electricity is produced from a nonhazardous organic material that
is available on a renewable or recurring basis, including pulp mill
sludge;
(G) Biologically derived fuel including methane gas, ethanol
or biodiesel fuel;
(H) Fuel cell technology, which means any electrochemical
device that converts chemical energy in a hydrogen-rich fuel
directly into electricity, heat and water without combustion;
(I) Recycled energy, which means useful thermal, mechanical or
electrical energy produced from: (i) Exhaust heat from any
commercial or industrial process; (ii) waste gas, waste fuel or
other forms of energy that would otherwise be flared, incinerated,
disposed of or vented; and (iii) electricity or equivalent
mechanical energy extracted from a pressure drop in any gas,
excluding any pressure drop to a condenser that subsequently vents the resulting heat; and
(J) Any other resource, method, project or technology
certified by the commission as a renewable energy resource.
(14) "Renewable energy resource facility" means a facility or
equipment that generates electricity from renewable energy
resources._____(16) "Solar renewable energy credit" or "SREC" means a
tradable instrument that is used to establish, verify and monitor
the generation of electricity from solar renewable energy resource
facilities.
_____(17) "Solar renewable energy resource facility" means a
facility that generates electricity only from solar photovoltaic
resources, solar thermal resources, or other solar electric energy
resources.
_____(15)(18) "Waste coal" means a technology by which electricity
is produced by the combustion of the by-product, waste or residue
created from processing coal, such as gob.
§24-2F-4. Awarding of alternative, and renewable, and solar
renewable energy resource credits.
(a) Credits established. -- The Public Service Commission
shall establish a system of tradable credits to establish, verify
and monitor the generation and sale of electricity generated from
alternative and non-solar renewable energy resource facilities. The credits may be traded, sold or used to meet the portfolio
standards established in section five of this article.
(b) Awarding of credits. -- Credits shall be awarded as
follows:
(1) An electric utility shall be awarded one credit for each
megawatt hour of electricity generated or purchased from an
alternative energy resource facility located within the
geographical boundaries of this state; or located outside of the
geographical boundaries of this state but within the service
territory of a regional transmission organization, as that term is
defined in 18 C.F.R. §35.34, that manages the transmission system
in any part of this state;
(2) An electric utility shall be awarded two credits for each
megawatt hour of electricity generated or purchased from a non-
solar renewable energy resource facility located within the
geographical boundaries of this state or located outside of the
geographical boundaries of this state but within the service
territory of a regional transmission organization, as that term is
defined in 18 C.F.R. §35.34, that manages the transmission system
in any part of this state;
(3) An electric utility shall be awarded three credits for
each megawatt hour of electricity generated or purchased from a
non-solar renewable energy resource facility located within the
geographical boundaries of this state if the non-solar renewable energy resource facility is sited upon a reclaimed surface mine;
and
(4) A customer-generator shall be awarded one credit for each
megawatt hour of electricity generated from an alternative energy
resource facility and shall be awarded two credits for each
megawatt hour of electricity generated from a non-solar renewable
energy resource facility.__(c) Awarding of solar renewable energy credits. -- SRECs shall
be awarded as follows:
__(1) An electric utility is awarded one SREC for each megawatt
hour of electricity generated or purchased from a solar renewable
energy resource facility located within the geographical boundaries
of this state;
__(2) An electric utility is awarded two SRECs for each megawatt
hour of electricity generated or purchased from a solar renewable
energy resource facility located within the geographical boundaries
of this state if the solar renewable energy resource facility is
sited upon a reclaimed surface mine; and
__(3) A customer-generator is awarded one SREC for each megawatt
hour of electricity generated from a solar renewable energy
resource facility.
__(c)(d)Acquiring of credits and SRECs permitted. --
(1) An electric utility may meet the alternative and renewable
energy portfolio standards set forth in this article by purchasing additional credits and SRECs. Credits and SRECs may be bought or
sold by an electric utility or customer-generator or banked and
used to meet an alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard
requirement in a subsequent year.
(2) Each credit and SREC transaction shall be reported by the
selling entity to the Public Service Commission on a form provided
by the commission.
(3) As soon as reasonably possible after the effective date of
this section, the commission shall establish a registry of data, or
use an independent and industry-recognized system, that shall track
credit and SREC transactions and shall list the following
information for each transaction: (i) The parties to the
transaction; (ii) the number of credits and SRECs sold or
transferred; and (iii) the price paid. Information contained in
the registry shall be available to the public, except that pricing
information concerning individual transactions shall be
confidential and exempt from disclosure under subdivision (5),
subsection (a), section four, article one, chapter twenty-nine-b of
this code.
(4) The commission may impose an administrative transaction
fee on a credit or SREC transaction in an amount not to exceed the
actual direct cost of processing the transaction by the commission.(d)(e)Credits for certain emission reduction or offset
projects. --
(1) The commission may award credits to an electric utility
for greenhouse gas emission reduction or offset projects. For each
ton of carbon dioxide equivalent reduced or offset as a result of
an approved greenhouse gas emission reduction project, the
commission shall award an electric utility one credit: Provided,
That the emissions reductions and offsets are verifiable and
certified in accordance with rules promulgated by the commission:
Provided, however, That the commission has previously approved the
greenhouse gas emission reduction and offset project for credit in
accordance with section six of this article.
(2) The commission shall consult and coordinate with the
Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection or an
independent and industry-recognized entity to verify and certify
greenhouse gas emission reduction or offset projects. The
Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection shall
provide assistance and information to the Public Service Commission
and may enter into interagency agreements with the commission to
effectuate the purposes of this subsection.
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, an
electric utility may not be awarded credits for a greenhouse gas
emission reduction or offset project undertaken pursuant to any
obligation under any other state law, policy or regulation.(e)(f)Credits for certain energy efficiency and demand-side
energy initiative projects. --
(1) The commission may award credits to an electric utility
for investments in energy efficiency and demand-side energy
initiative projects. For each megawatt hour of electricity
conserved as a result of an approved energy efficiency or demand-
side energy initiative project, the commission shall award one
credit: Provided, That the amount of electricity claimed to be
conserved is verifiable and certified in accordance with rules
promulgated by the commission: Provided, however, That the
commission has approved the energy efficiency or demand-side energy
initiative project for credit in accordance with section six of
this article.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, an
electric utility may not be awarded credit for an energy efficiency
or demand-side energy initiative project undertaken pursuant to any
obligation under any other state law, policy or regulation.§24-2F-5. Alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard;
compliance assessments.
(a) General rule. -- Each electric utility doing business in
this state shall be required to meet the alternative and renewable
energy portfolio standards set forth in this section. In order to
meet these standards, an electric utility each year shall own an
amount of credits and SRECs equal to a certain percentage of
electricity, as set forth in subsections (c) and (d) of this section, sold by the electric utility in the preceding year to
retail customers in West Virginia.
(b) Counting of credits and SRECs towards compliance. -- For
the purpose of determining an electric utility's compliance with
the alternative and renewable energy portfolio standards set forth
in subsections (c) and (d) of this section, each credit and SREC
shall equal one megawatt hour of electricity sold by an electric
utility in the preceding year to retail customers in West Virginia.
Furthermore, a credit or SREC may not be used more than once to
meet the requirements of this section. No more than ten percent of
the credits used each year to meet the compliance requirements of
this section may be credits acquired from the generation or
purchase of electricity generated from natural gas. No more than
ten percent of the credits used each year to meet the compliance
requirements of this section may be credits acquired from the
generation or purchase of electricity generated from supercritical
technology.
(c) Twenty-five percent by 2025. -- (1) On and after January 1, 2025, an electric utility shall
each year own credits in an amount equal to at least twenty-five
percent of the electric energy sold by the electric utility to
retail customers in this state in the preceding calendar year._____(2) On and after January 1, 2025, an electric utility shall
each year own SRECs in an amount equal to at least two percent of the electric energy sold by the electric utility to retail
customers in this state in the preceding calendar year.
(d) Interim portfolio standards. --
(1) For the period beginning January 1, 2015, and ending
December 31, 2019, an electric utility shall each year own credits
in an amount equal to at least ten percent of the electric energy
sold by the electric utility to retail customers in this state in
the preceding calendar year; and
(2) For the period beginning January 1, 2020, and ending
December 31, 2024, an electric utility shall each year own credits
in an amount equal to at least fifteen percent of the electric
energy sold by the electric utility to retail customers in this
state in the preceding calendar year;_____(3) For the period beginning January 1, 2015, and ending
December 31, 2019, an electric utility shall each year own SRECs in
an amount equal to at least one-half percent of the electric energy
sold by the electric utility to retail customers in this state in
the preceding calendar year: Provided, that the electric utility
may purchase SRECs from solar renewable energy resource facilities
located in Ohio and Pennsylvania for the period beginning January
1, 2015, and ending December 31, 2017; and
_____(4) For the period beginning January 1, 2020, and ending
December 31, 2024, an electric utility shall each year own SRECs in
an amount equal to at least one and one-half percent of the electric energy sold by the electric utility to retail customers in
this state in the preceding calendar year.
_____(e) Distributed solar renewable energy requirement. -- In
order to improve system reliability, each electric utility affected
by this act shall be required to satisfy a Distributed Solar
Renewable Energy Requirement by obtaining SRECs from Distributed
Solar Renewable Energy Resources.
_____(1) On and after January 1, 2025, an electric utility shall
obtain twenty-five percent of their required SRECs from distributed
solar renewable energy resources.
_____(2) For the period beginning January 1, 2016 and ending
December 31, 2019, an electric utility shall obtain ten percent of
their required SRECs from distributed solar renewable energy
resources.
_____(3) For the period beginning January 1, 2020, and ending
December 31, 2024, an electric utility shall obtain fifteen percent
of their required SRECs from distributed solar renewable energy
resources.
_____(e)(f)Double-counting of credits and SRECs prohibited. --
Any portion of electricity generated from an alternative, non-solar
renewable, or solar renewable energy resource facility that is used
to meet another state's alternative energy, advanced energy,
renewable energy or similar energy portfolio standard may not be
used to meet the requirements of this section. An electric utility that is subject to an alternative energy, advanced energy,
renewable energy or similar energy portfolio standard in any other
state shall list, in the alternative and renewable energy portfolio
standard compliance plan required under section six of this
article, any such requirements and shall indicate how it satisfied
those requirements. The electric utility shall provide in the
annual progress report required under section six of this article
any additional information required by the commission to prevent
double-counting of credits and SRECs.
_____(f)(g)Carryover. -- An electric utility may apply any
credits and SRECs that are in excess of the alternative and
renewable energy portfolio standard in any given year to the
requirements for any future year portfolio standard: Provided,
That the electric utility determines to the satisfaction of the
commission that such credits and SRECs were in excess of the
portfolio standard in a given year and that such credits and SRECs
have not previously been used for compliance with a portfolio
standard.(g)(h)Compliance assessments. --
(1) On or after January 1, 2015, and each year thereafter, the
commission shall determine whether each electric utility doing
business in this state is in compliance with this section. If,
after notice and a hearing, the commission determines that an
electric utility has failed to comply with an alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard, the commission shall impose a
compliance assessment on the electric utility which shall equal at
least the lesser of the following:
(A) Fifty dollars multiplied by the number of additional
credits and SRECs that would be needed to meet an alternative and
renewable energy portfolio standard in a given year; or
(B) Two hundred percent of the average market value of credits
and SRECs sold in a given year multiplied by the number of
additional credits and SRECs needed to meet the alternative and
renewable energy portfolio standard for that year.
(2) Compliance assessments collected by the commission
pursuant to this subsection shall be deposited into the Alternative
and Renewable Energy Resources Research Fund established in section
eleven of this article.(h)(i)Force majeure. --
(1) Upon its own initiative or upon the request of an electric
utility, the commission may modify the portfolio standard
requirements of an electric utility in a given year or years or
recommend to the Legislature that the portfolio standard
requirements be eliminated if the commission determines that
alternative or renewable energy resources are not reasonably
available in the marketplace in sufficient quantities for the
electric utility to meet the requirements of this article.
(2) In making its determination, the commission shall consider whether the electric utility made good faith efforts to acquire
sufficient credits and SRECs to comply with the requirements of
this article. Such good faith efforts shall include, but are not
limited to, banking excess credits and SRECs, seeking credits and
SRECs through competitive solicitations and seeking to acquire
credits and SRECs through long-term contracts. The commission
shall assess the availability of credits and SRECs on the open
market. The commission may also require that the electric utility
solicit credits and SRECs before a request for modification may be
granted.
(3) If an electric utility requests a modification of its
portfolio standard requirements, the commission shall make a
determination as to the request within sixty days.
(4) Commission modification of an electric utility's portfolio
standard requirements shall apply only to the portfolio standard in
the year or years modified by the commission. Commission
modification may not automatically reduce an electric utility's
alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard requirements in
future years.
(5) If the commission modifies an electric utility's portfolio
standard requirements, the commission may also require the electric
utility to acquire additional credits and SRECs in subsequent years
equivalent to the requirements reduced by the commission in
accordance with this subsection.(i)(j)Termination. -- The provisions of this section shall
have no force and effect after June 30, 2026.§24-2F-6. Alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard
compliance plan; application; approval; and progress
report.
(a) On or before January 1, 2011, each electric utility
subject to the provisions of this article shall prepare an
alternative and renewable energy portfolio standard compliance plan
and shall file an application with the commission seeking approval
of such plan.
(b) A portfolio standard compliance plan shall include:
(1) Statistics and information concerning the electric
utility's sales to retail customers in West Virginia during the
preceding ten calendar years;
(2) A calculation of the electric utility's projected yearly
sales to retail customers for the years 2011-2025;
(3) A calculation of the expected number of credits and SRECs
required to meet the portfolio standards set forth in this article;
(4) An anticipated time line for the development, purchase or
procurement of credits and SRECs sufficient to meet the portfolio
standards set forth in this article;
(5) A nonbinding estimate of the costs to comply with the
portfolio standards set forth in this article;
(6) A description of any greenhouse gas emission reduction or
offset projects or energy efficiency and demand-side energy
initiative projects the electric utility proposes to undertake for
credit in accordance with this article;
(7) A list of any requirements and a description of how the
electric utility satisfied or will satisfy those requirements if an
electric utility is subject to an alternative energy, advanced
energy, renewable energy or similar energy portfolio standard in
any other state; and
(8) Such further information as required by the commission.
(c) Upon the filing of an application for approval of a
portfolio standard compliance plan, and after hearing and proper
notice, the commission may, in its discretion, approve or
disapprove, or approve in part or disapprove in part, the
application: Provided, That the commission, after giving proper
notice and receiving no protest within thirty days after the notice
is given, may waive formal hearing on the application. Notice
shall be published as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance
with the provisions of article three, chapter fifty-nine of this
code, and shall be given in a manner and in such form as may be
prescribed by the commission.
(d) The commission shall, following proper notice and hearing,
if any, render a final decision on any application filed pursuant
to this section within two hundred seventy days of the filing of the application.
(e) If, and to the extent, the commission determines that a
portfolio standard compliance plan has a reasonable expectation of
achieving the portfolio standard requirements at a reasonable cost
to electric customers in this state, the commission shall approve
the plan. In establishing that the requisite standard for approval
of a portfolio standard compliance plan is met, the burden of proof
shall be upon the applicant.
(f) In the event the commission disapproves of an application
filed pursuant to this section, in whole or in part, the commission
shall specify its reason or reasons for disapproval. Any portion
of the application not approved by the commission shall be modified
and resubmitted by the applicant.
(g) Either upon an application of the electric utility, a
petition by a party or the commission's own motion, a compliance
plan proceeding may be reopened for the purpose of considering and
making, if appropriate, alterations to the plan.
(h) Approval of the compliance plan does not eliminate the
need for an electric utility to otherwise obtain required
approvals, including, but not limited to, certificates to
construct, consent to enter into affiliated contracts and recovery
of compliance costs. Furthermore, nothing in this article shall be
interpreted to alter or amend the existing power and authority of
the commission.
(i) Approval of the compliance plan does not relieve an
electric utility from its obligation to pay a compliance assessment
pursuant to the provisions of section five of this article if it
fails to comply with the portfolio standards set forth therein.
(j) Within a year of the commission's approval of an electric
utility's compliance plan, and every year thereafter, the electric
utility shall submit to the commission an annual progress report.
The progress report shall include the electric utility's sales to
retail customers in West Virginia during the previous calendar
year; the amount of energy the electric utility has generated,
purchased or procured from alternative, ornon-solar renewable, and
renewable energy resources; a comparison of the budgeted and actual
costs as compared to the estimated cost of the portfolio standard
compliance plan; any information required by the commission to
prevent the double-counting of credits and SRECs; and any further
information required by the commission.
(k) The commission shall impose a special assessment on all
electric utilities required to file a compliance plan. The
assessments shall be prorated among the covered electric utilities
on the basis of kilowatt hours of retail sales in West Virginia and
shall be due and payable on September 1 of each year. The amount
of revenue collected pursuant to this subsection may not exceed
$200,000 in the first year following the effective date of this
article and may not exceed $100,000 in successive years. The funds generated from the assessments shall be used exclusively to offset
all reasonable direct and indirect costs incurred by the commission
in administering the provisions of this article.§24-2F-10. Portfolio requirements for rural electric
cooperatives, municipally owned electric
facilities or utilities serving less than
thirty thousand residential electric customers
in West Virginia; and alternative and renewable
energy resource credits for nonutility
generators.
(a) The commission shall consider adopting, by rule,
alternative and renewable energy portfolio requirements for rural
electric cooperatives, municipally owned electric facilities or
utilities serving less than thirty thousand residential electric
customers in this state. The commission shall institute a general
investigation for the purpose of adopting such requirements.
(b) The commission shall consider extending, by rule, the
awarding of alternative and renewable energy resource credits and
SRECs in accordance with the provisions of section four of this
article to electric distribution companies or electric generation
suppliers other than electric utilities. As part of its
investigation, the commission shall examine any modifications to
the statutory and regulatory structure necessary to permit the participation of such nonutility generators in the system of
tradable credits and SRECs authorized by this article. If the
commission determines that statutory modifications to this article
or other provisions of this code are necessary to permit such
participation, the commission shall notify the Governor and the
Legislature of the findings of its investigation and proposed
legislation necessary to effectuate its recommendations.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to make several revisions
and additions to the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio
Act; establishes a solar renewable energy credit (SREC) system to
monitor and track the generation of electricity from solar energy
resources; establishes a distributed solar renewable energy
requirement; and requires that all SRECs awarded come from
electricity generated or purchased from facilities located only
within the geographical boundaries of West Virginia.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.